Russ opted for a rest day, so George and Sue set off on foot at 8am to explore Lazienki Palace and Royal Baths Park.

Definitely a more summery feel in the air and no wind for the first time since we arrived in Warsaw.

Tennis park and football stadium en route.

The Lazienki Palace is on 78 hectares of gardens and in the middle of a lake…first glimpse

The view from the bridge and then into the gardens.

Can you read the T-shirt- these kiwis got lost!

Wandering through the gardens, planning on a circumnavigation of the Palace, after about 40 minutes we ended up back in this exact same spot, not actually having got near the palace.

On the way, however…

The Orange grove house – with a very manicured orchard of round orange trees (pruned to perfection)

Squirrels running around in the treed gardens…

Memorial monument to Fredrick Chopin, surrounded by deck chairs to soak up the ambience.

This bird enjoying the peace and quiet and sweet smell of the rose gardens.

And this bird enjoying the summer sunshine and smell of cat poo….couldn’t rest for too long and checked the bottom of my shoes..but all clear!

Back down the hill towards the palace…

Peaceful little rivers and pathways….and a full circle of the right hand corner back to where we started.

Ok, palace on the radar now, we stick close to the lake.

Et Voila, up close and personal with the palace building. Around the side to the back gardens and lake.

This story continues….

Not all stories are happy ones and today’s journey took the Kiwi Wanderers on a very sobering path.

While Warsaw is a vibrant and beautiful city to visit, under the sometimes sombre faces of the Poles lies some memories that can never be forgotten.

Today we visited Treblinka – the labour camp and the extermination camp site of the polish Jewish people and many other adjoining countries.

We knew it would not be a happy day, but we did not imagine the reality.

We booked a Bolt (Uber) driver to transport us both ways, an hour and a half from Warsaw.

We arrived in a deserted forest area, obviously not a prime tourist attraction. These camps were set up by the Nazis in 1942, disguised as a relocation destination for Jewish people, mainly from the Jewish Ghetto in Warsaw…it operated for only 11 months and saw the murders of 900,000 Jews in that time. They were allowed to take 15 kgs of luggage with them, and were transported by overcrowded cattle train carriages to what they quickly realised was to be their demise.

Upon arrival at Treblinka II (the extermination camp) by railway, (those that survived the journey) the people were stripped of all their possessions, clothing and the womens hair shaved and marched into gas chambers…. the disabled and ill were herded to a “hospital” and shot in the back of their heads.

Some of the more able were moved to the labour camp, Treblinka I, two kms further into the forest, to work as slaves to the German and Ukrainian guards and were used to make the black road (from Treblinka I to Treblinka II) out of broken grave headstones, work in the quarry, garden and work on the arrival platform – sorting clothes and possessions to send back to Germany – all the while, knowing their fellow countryman’s fate was instant death on arrival.

Very few who tried to escape survived, due to the remoteness and the cruelty of the guards…shoot as soon as they moved.

Upon disbanding the camp, all evidence (burial pits and buildings) were burnt to the ground to alleviate any of the atrocities committed here…this memorial has been built on the site of the extermination campsite in memory of some who lost their lives.

This was our first encounter of the Treblinka II (extermination camp) and we were already feeling the sadness of the area.

This is a reconstruction of a fire pit, where any remains were burnt.

And here, where the train stopped and where the people were stripped of their possessions and dignity, stands a memorial to all the countries who suffered at the hands of the Germans of Treblinka.

The next steps of our journey took us 2 kms down the handmade black road to Treblinka I, the labour camp, further into the forest…

A short rest for Russ along the tree lined road, where many took their final steps. The silence was overwhelming, probably the most eerie feeling was the lack of any birds or any signs of wildlife in such a densely wooded area…

This road opened out onto the quarry, where the labour camp people worked until they were too broken and then sent to the execution site.

The path then opened up to the labour camp remains…

A very cleared and precisely carved wooded boundary in the middle of the forest.

The stoned floors of the housing and storehouses still remain.

The area had been totally enclosed with barb wire fences and disguised with plants growing on on the outside with guard towers at all points.

We again walked the 2km “black road” with a much deeper understanding of the pain of WWII murder camps…

At least this area has been discovered and uncovered so that everyone, who visits, can keep the memories alive of those who died here.

Our taxi driver was waiting on our return to the still deserted car park and we had a very quiet journey back into the city.

A day like today makes us appreciate our freedom to roam and the opportunities available to us, without persecution!

Coffee time with George who arrived last night, waking up to Wawsaw!

First stop the Bakery (local) to pocket our sandwiches for our morning trip to the “outlet mall” – we didn’t buy cakes and the boys were really excited about the shopping expedition….

The entrance to the mall after another very reasonable Bolt(Uber) ride!

So to spare my readers the agony – shoes, shorts and T-shirt’s …. done and dusted in a couple of hours, sandwiches eaten and back home for a small rest before the afternoon excursion.

Resting en route to old town before the hill climb, and checking out the cricket score! Half way up the hill, it was victory for the black caps in the World Cup semi final.

Poland’s got talent was happening at the top of the hill with lots of music and auditions underway!

A glimpse inside the church housing the hearts of renowned Polish people

And behind this plaque herein lies the heart of Frederick Chopin.

Now we turn our attention to the street entertainment happening in the old city evening.

Two girls singing and playing harp like instruments. The polish language sounding very lyrical.

The tradies hard at work laying a new paved road..one to lift, one to lay and one to hammer into place.

Flowers flourishing in the cooler polish summer, and rain.

A couple of girls in costume – century unknown.

This young man Playing his tiny piano and really enjoying his life…I think!

A couple of tourists using their imagination….A father/son moment!

And a husband/wife moment in the middle of Old Town.

And the tall monument dwarfing George – not much dwarfs George – in old European towns thing are just high.

Finished the evening off with a meal at an, off the beaten track, well rated restaurant….

Zwierzyniec Beer, halibut, pork and peas, risotto! The ratings on the food were correct, delicious food. And just so we will write a good review on TripAdvisor, our waiter Simon bought out complementary flavoured vodka shots! Whilst we were eating our dinner a couple of accordion playing street vendors came past and George shared our bread with them.

Russ really enjoyed them!

After a big walking day yesterday a more gentle wander was planned for this morning.

So when one is exploring the neighbourhood, one goes the opposite way from the day before, however this was uphill…but sometimes that is the option.

A wall of street art, in fact there does appear to be a lot of street art, and graffiti on the accessible walls…this however brightened up a dull morning (puffer jackets on again in our wawsaw summer break).

Halfway up the hill we stumbled on (actually had a rest break at) Chopins Museum. Not opening until 11am, which seems to be the theme here with many attractions and shops.

A left and a right (I felt I wanted to wander that way) found us on a very long stretch of shops and cafés…A woman’s intuition is not always wrong!

Coffee time as not yet 11am (retail therapy time)

Spotted this big guy on the street…had to see what he was up to and there were hundreds more of these guys inside (although not all so large) A Teddy Bears Treasure Trove.

Shoes, clothes, cafes and eating places took us to the banking roundabout…a large main busy intersection flanked by bank buildings.

A left…leaving behind our food choices and starting to feel a little hungry…approaching a gate where we had to go down and under this major tram/car/train road…our gentle stroll (no one about) was interrupted by an out of control electric scooter, approaching from rear (sues rear to be exact) going about 20-30 Ks, wobbling and careering all over the footpath, narrowly missing Sue, scooter crashing sideways (in front of two stunned kiwis) and rider rolling, sliding very quickly towards road, stopping himself in gutter.

Russ says “Geeze are you Ok” – young man looking at his grazed hands, now broken headphones on – looks back as though we are stupid (second time in two days) picks up now resting scooter, and cranks it back into action and roars off at full speed again! Ok, so he missed me!

But no inclination to join the trend of electric scooter riding!

Moving right along – under transport road, cars parked way down there.

And looking back at the wall and gate, we had been heading to (before the scooter action), which we found out was the entrance to a rather large park …. walking and riding tracks all through.

There are lots of parks and green areas in Wawsaw, and if feels that one passes from urban to rural in a matter of minutes in any one wander.

Having done the full loop and a couple of hours on foot, we were back in our neighbourhood searching for food, the options abounded, burgers, hotdogs or very fattening breads and pastries!

Inside a small cafe with all the locals on lunch breaks munching on a burger, the rain came down and has shared the rest of the afternoon with us, not that we noticed…it was nap time!

Flying from Zurich to Wawsaw, Poland, a mere two hour flight was a little more than the kiwi travellers had bargained for…..the short story, 8pm plane delayed (at least not cancelled like a third of the other flights on a Sunday evening), waiting for our Bolt (Uber) taxi in the wrong place, losing the first one and having to book another, and arriving at our air BnB at a half past midnight to a very patient host! A list of instructions, and finally into bed at 1.30 am. (No idea where we were apart from “Wawsaw”)

Awoke to our view from the tiniest deck I’ve ever seen, it’s about 10 inches wide and as long as the door! Still a deck and a luxury in Northern Europe.

A little slow to get going, but needed to shop for a few supplies.

We are living very close to many food supply stores!

Buying bread and a treat! The good places, we worked out very quickly, have queues!

We took a walk around our neighbourhood to the Vistula river, the longest river in Poland, that runs through Wawsaw.

I think we are going to need some bikes to explore this area. A bit overcast and quite chilly, reaching 20 degrees Celsius today, puffer jackets needed this morning.

The gardens in our gated complex of apartments. Supplies in hand, we returned around 11am, for Russ to have a rest and Sue to catch up on some work.

By 2pm, the sun was streaming in and the afternoon looking warm…time for another walk to Old Town Wawsaw, which appeared quite close on the map…things are not always as they seem and we realised later we had definitely taken the scenic route!

First discovery..

The university gardens. Roof and wall greenery, quite the eco system…we did see people on the roof, but thought we would save that for another day.

Still heading to Old Town, we decided to give the uphill a miss and skirted around the outside of this church on the hill…

There was no avoiding the uphill, however, and we did have to take a side path to get up into the old town, we should have realised all old European towns are either on a hill or on a lake.

Wandering around the streets, narrow cobbled, and colourful plaster.

The Royal Palace, on the square, free tours on Wednesday’s (a shorter version – perfect for Russ, we’ll lock that one in).

Checking out the next ride..and still thinking electric bikes may be a better option. (I could never put my toes on the ground if I needed to stop suddenly)

Old town Wawsaw was practically demolished at the end of World War II, by the Nazis, and has been slowly rebuilt in the exact replica of the original design.

The walls and gate into the city, and surrounding the city are a great example of the rebuild.

We found an off the beaten track cafe, that was away from the tourist throngs, and enjoyed a latte before heading towards home for the evening.

This was, however, tempting – a Pilsner truck/bar in a backyard courtyard!

And no city is complete without an Irish bar!!! Moving right along….

To the Church of the Carmelites dating back to 1780.

The Presidents Palace, and current residence, based on the chains and security guards holding the fort.

No adventure is complete without rubbing shoulders with the locals.

Russ got picked up by a homeless person, who was very interested in our part of the world it seemed. However, it took a while, but yes he asked for money! Russ told him he had none, his wife had all the money. Russ was telling the truth, but his new friend thought he was lying and along with some other strong words, told Russ he was stupid (not very nice really).

A street of churches, and a pensive statute, a cardinal Steffan, a very highly regarded member of the Pole society during last century.

And the 18th century Holy Cross church containing urns of the hearts of notable Polish people, one being the heart of Chopin.

Wishing I had brought the puffer jacket, as the sun had gone and wind was up again, it was time to head for home for the evening, and an early night after a busy day and not much sleep in the last 48 hours.

Wawsaw is promising to be a wonderful adventure!

Well our humans, 22 year friendship, and we still catch up from the other side of the world – the Kiwi/Swiss connection

Verena, Benjamin and Sue – first night Dinner date!

The boys, Florian and Benjamin in the forest!

Florian, Russ and Verena at Zurich street party…

A view from a bridge, the three again sporting the wet weather gear in Lucerne

And again, sheltering from the storm…(Lucerne flash thunderstorm)….not looking too perturbed, so long as Beer in hand!

Three and a half days of busy, Swiss fun with great people, we highly recommend this restaurant (of Verena) , and coffee making skills….and after a quieter more relaxed day, packed again, the kiwis fly out this evening.

We begin today with a round up of last night and our big night out! Certainly big for two old kiwis!

Zurich Party, where all of downtown Zurich is “Eingang” (entry by foot) only….practicing my German. A tram and a train to get as close as we could get…before footing it.

The early evening twilight portrait, with Zurich lake behind….

While all around us, half of Switzerlands population enjoyed the sights and sounds (a slight exaggeration – but huge crowds)

Fairground rides for about 5 kilometres around the lakefront.

Freefalling, one way to escape the crowds!

Airshow over the lake, the Swiss Army, performed amazing manoeuvres overhead!

Florian having a small snack on the 6km walk to our prebooked table on the other lake front in the swimming beach grounds!

Did I say it was very hot! So the walk, noise, crowds and heat were all a little overwhelming..we were now six, with Florian and Verenas’ Finnish friends joining us for their first time Zurich party too.

As the sun set, we arrived at our prime (lakefront) position (organised by our wonderful hosts) in readiness for an evening of sights and sounds!

The kiwi, Austrian, Swiss and Finnish team (with a couple of Americans sharing our table) relaxing, beer in hand, fireworks about to start!

Rock music accompaniment and a perfect position under a speaker, performed with precision timing and display….

And to share a taste of the amazingness – an iPhone 8 amateur video…Ground control to Major Tom, a David Bowie classic…

But wait there was more, after a breathtaking 30 minutes, we had the first time, 150 drone light show to come

Again with Swiss precision, this was an entertaining and very clever work of art across the lake!

Around 12.30 pm, it was time to head for home…opting to avoid the crowds and another 6km walk to the train, Verena took us straight up a couple of blocks, hailed a taxi, and had us tucked up in bed by 1.30am!!! What a fantastic experience.

So that was last night, another fun day planned for today, with a trip to Lucerne, just a bit over an hour away…clouds deciding that probably best to explore the city rather than venture into the mountains..

First glimpse of Lake Vierwaldstättersee, on which the city of Lucerne sits on.

Florian was hungry and I needed a loo…

Very clear instructions for my 1 franc toilet stop!

And a coffee and snack stop at “Bachmann” a food stop for every taste..

A wall of dripping chocolate above a vast selection of specialty chocolates! Also coffee and sandwiches.

Upon “Ausgang” (exiting by foot) A slight raindrop saw us Don our free ponchos (handed to us last night and not needed)

As we explored the streets of this beautiful old city.

Picture perfect architecture and fountains graced our walk…then I spied an antique market, the flea type, along the lake edge.

Not a boys thing, but fun for a Kiwi op-shop fan.

It was back across another bridge, destination craft beer pub! The calm before the storm (literally) and an eerie light on the water.

Of course no European city (or story) is complete without a picture of a Kirche (church – deep into learning my new language now)

This one sporting a colourful Big Ben on its spire.

Managing to secure a waterfront position (At pub) with a view of the famous Chapel Bridge built in the 1400’s

Beer and snacks and coffee (again) happily relaxing, the darkness was rolling down the mountains in the distance! And within about 2 minutes it hit, torrential rain and gale force winds, punters diving for inside shelter and staff grabbing flying chairs, plates cups and glasses before they all ended up in the lake!

This lasted for about 30 minutes, and changed the landscape and ambience very rapidly, in other places in the city, it downed trees and blew over lines of parked bikes…was kind of fun (not for the poor staff trying to secure their outside dining possessions and getting drenched in the process)

Ponchos still earning their keep, after about half an hour it was safe to head outside and back to the car for the journey home…

Another great adventure and day in the wandering kiwis life.

No I haven’t spelt Sea wrong, “See” is the word for Lake!

A quiet start to a Friday morning, catching up on work before the weekend!

Benjamin out the door at 8am and taking himself off to kindy (at five)..they teach them independence early here and live in a safe city! He walks home again at midday!

The adults took a walk to the shops.

Through another park with a swimming pool complex (puts Waiwera hot pools to shame) gardens, pools and fountains..

To the bank, to withdraw some of the local currency, Swiss francs, supermarket to replace Florian’s beer and buy transport pass ready to hit the Zurich Party tonight!

Home for a Russ rest, lunch and wait for Benjamin before the afternoon excursion to the “See” (lake).

Through another forest, around the edge of the lake to the swimming hole.

The parking lot – bikes galore! Popular summer mode of transport!

To our patch in the shade at the lakes edge.

Florian, Verena, Benjamin and Russ jumped in!

Sue amused herself watching the confident ducks(?) make themselves at home on our blanket. These guys have the biggest feet I have ever seen on a bird, it looks like they are wearing flippers.

They kinda look like short, fat “Pukekos” our kiwi swamp bird.

“The Jetty” reminds me of a Sam Hunt competition winning poem, Jaxon and Dan!

And the Swiss all relaxing at the beach! And a Kiwi in the middle, sitting in the shade….

Benjamin and big people needed enjoyed the swims, icecream, coffee and a nap!

Time to leave, as the after work people were heading in…a 30 degree day (celcius) warrants a swim wherever you are in the world.

Time to wake up and get ready for the biggest party in Zurich, which happens once every three years!

Goodbye Vienna, but a taste of your world and hospitality! One (actually two) last coffees at our new favourite coffee bar!

Bolt is the new Uber, and our taxi to the airport arrived in one minute!

Everyone in Vienna is so helpful and checking in was a breeze, and we were off on to our next destination!

Austrian airlines you rock, wine, coffee snack and leg room to die for (in economy) – all on a one hour, ten minute flight!

Before we knew it we were touching down in the banking capital of the world….Zurich!

And with our friends Florian and Verena and young Benjamin (who I’m sure thinks Russ and I are strange, as we don’t under stand a word he says and just grin and look stupid)

Dinner booked a short (30 minute) walk from the city to the county!

Benjamin riding and Florian on the scooter trying to keep up (with a 5 year old) Russ and I coming up the rear and Verena keeping us company

Through a forest – and

Farmland to a very popular farm restaurant for dinner.

The boys and their wheat beer and..

The girls and Benjamin enjoying a nice warm Swiss evening and delicious pork snitzel!

Then it was back home along the river…and the five year old keeping us on our toes.

Sues turn to try and keep up on the scooter!

And we got there in the end – still in one peace – a 58 year old on a scooter is no match for a five year old on a bike!

Feeling a few side effects from the cycling day, the wandering kiwis chose to catch a train straight to Schönborn Palace, number one on the must sees in Vienna. The train ride became a train 🚞 walking 🚶‍♀️ bus 🚌 walking 🚶‍♂️ train 🚞 ride, due to remodelling of the train line on our chosen route. Upon arrival, finally, at the Palace, it appeared that every other visitor to Vienna today had this must see on their must do list!

We joined the procession into the main gates.

The garden front of the Palace was fenced off and sporting a huge stage, tents, seating and stands…summer evening music concerts at the Palace are happening evidently.

A little closer to the front entrance podium.

The organised Kiwis had purchased a sandwich and packed some water, and decided to look for a more peaceful place and a park bench…hunger and thirst sated, and wandering deeper into the gardens, we soon realised there were acres of Park to hide in (500 acres to be exact)

We chanced upon the “Palm House” a structure built in 1883 at which time, it was the largest greenhouse in Europe, housing exotic plants (1500 species of orchids to name a few) and hundreds of butterfly species.

Having strolled around for an hour or more, choosing not to enter the zoo (which is also in this park), we arrived at the back side of the castle…

Looking back at the Palace and in the other direction to the “Neptune Fountain” and the second building on the hill (one we didn’t climb)

The reverse side of the in full panorama, picking the moment when humans were scarce.

One of the many statues, a man and his dog, unconditional love!

And a collage of Russ in the guardhouse and in front of one of the many garden gazebos and Sue in front of the fountain.

An opulent Baroque building and parklands in the middle of the city of Vienna and well worth the visit. (It is after all – number one attraction)

It was then back to train-bus-train for the journey home, hopping off the bus at “Naschmarkt” a streetmarket with mainly food, cafes and more food and dresses from what appeared mainly Turkish origin (at a guess).

Lots of stuffed things and dried things and fruit and cakes, with a distinctive aroma of herbs and curry!

Another 2km walk before getting back on the train to town and closer to home. In desperate need of a bathroom, which it seems are few and far between when needed, Russ just had to buy an ice cream, at a cafe, to relieve my stress!

Getting a bit weary we headed towards our room…and en route happened on this gothic style church.

Door open, so took a peep inside.

Beautiful leadlights and gold at the front…

And an enormous organ raised above the back entrance doors. Carvings and sculptures quite gothic and scary.

Out the back door and down a flight of steps and we were back. Visiting the supermarket on the way, dinner sorted, repacking to do and checking out of Vienna in the morning heading to Zurich!